Claims
- 1. A sealable tray assembly for use with a brewing apparatus for receiving and retaining spent brewing substance from the brewing apparatus and preventing steam and moisture from escaping therefrom, said sealable tray assembly comprising: a tray body having sides, a bottom connected to a lower edge of said sides and an open end defined by an upper edge of said sides; a cover member covering said open end of said tray body, said cover member being retained along an inside surface of said sides for draining liquid and condensate which collects on an inside surface of said cover into said tray body to prevent escape of moisture from said tray assembly, said cover member having a material receiving aperture formed therethrough in communication with said brewing apparatus for receiving moist material, said material receiving aperture being positioned on said cover spaced away from said sides for depositing said spent brewing substance generally centrally on said liquid separation means; a sealing member positioned between said brewing apparatus and said material receiving aperture for sealing said sealable tray assembly for preventing steam and moisture from escaping therefrom; liquid separation means generally, horizontally retained in said tray body between said bottom and said open end for draining liquids from moist material, said liquid draining through said liquid separation means and collecting in an area of said tray therebelow; and a controllably sealable tray valve assembly attached to said tray body and being operatively engagable with a drain line for draining liquids from said tray assembly out of said tray body.
- 2. A sealable tray assembly according to claim 1, further including a support lip extending around an inside surface of said tray body and defining said open end of said tray body, said support lip being sized and dimensioned for receiving said cover member.
- 3. A sealable tray assembly according to claim 2, wherein said cover member is flexible for engaging said sealing member in an interference fit.
- 4. A sealable tray assembly for use with a brewing apparatus for receiving and retaining spent brewing substances from the brewing apparatus and preventing steam and moisture from escaping therefrom, said sealable tray assembly comprising: a tray body having an open end; liquid separation means generally, horizontally oriented and retained in said tray body spaced away form said open end for collecting said spend brewing substance thereon and draining a liquid component form said substance therethrough, said liquid collecting in an area of said tray below said liquid separation means; a cover member covering said open end of said tray body, said cover member having a material receiving aperture formed therethrough in communication with said brewing apparatus for receiving moist material therefrom, said material receiving aperture being positioned on said cover for depositing said spent brewing substance generally centrally on said liquid separation means; said tray body having a support lip extending around an inside surface of said tray body and defining said open end of said tray body, said support lip being sized and dimensioned for receiving said cover member, said cover member being retained along an inside surface of said open end of said tray body for draining liquid and condensate which collects on an inside surface of said cover into said tray body to prevent escape of moisture from said tray assembly; a sealing member positioned between said brewing apparatus and said material receiving aperture for sealing said sealable tray assembly for preventing steam and moisture form escaping therefrom; said cover member is flexible for sealable engaging said sealing member in said material receiving aperture in an interference fit to prevent the escape of steam and moisture therethrough.
- 5. A sealable tray assembly according to claim 4, further including said cover and said support lip being cooperatively shaped for closing said open end to prevent the escape of steam and moisture therefrom.
Parent Case Info
This is a Divisional application of application Ser. No. 08/063,491, filed on May 18, 1993, (now U.S. Pat. No. 5,395,515) which is a Divisional application of Ser. No. 07/857,464, filed Mar. 25, 1992, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,245,915, issued Sep. 21, 1993.
US Referenced Citations (16)
Foreign Referenced Citations (4)
Number |
Date |
Country |
724292 |
Aug 1942 |
DEX |
2052475 |
Apr 1972 |
DEX |
1143609 |
Jun 1989 |
JPX |
2881 |
Jan 1887 |
GBX |
Divisions (2)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
63491 |
May 1993 |
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Parent |
857464 |
Mar 1992 |
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